Summer is in the air, my friends, and all is right in the world.
With all this balmy weather, surely there must be something fun, something unique, something OUTDOORS that does not require excessive spending. Perhaps something a single person, or a couple, or even a whole family might enjoy? A place where the married can remember why they’re a couple, or where a lonely single person might find a kindred spirit? An environment where you’re welcome to sit and watch if you’re a little shy, but also welcome to jump in and join the fun if the spirit moves? An experience different and unique and delightfully magical that welcomes any and all ages, with no pressure, no judgement, just fun.
But wait! There is!
Every Tuesday evening throughout an amazing Grand Rapids summer only West Michigan can boast, from May to mid-October, a captivating world of swing dancing, where rhythm, movement, and expression collide to create an electrifying experience begins at Rosa Parks Circle, nestled in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids.
Since 2002, “The Grand Rapids Original Swing Society” (G.R.O.S.S) has fostered a welcoming community of dancers of all skill levels cementing this organization as a cornerstone of West Michigan’s dance scene. Don’t be fooled by the acronym, having won an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records, and as one of the largest dance societies of its kind, this swing dance society is truly one of a kind, and there’s nothing gross about it!
I was lucky enough to talk with the founder of this delightful organization, Steve Zaagman, who described the genesis and growth of Grand Rapids Original Swing society, and how this dance community’s unlikely journey from little beginnings to big endings has been spreading joy and communal fellowship, through dance, over the last 21 years.
For a niche dance event so well populated by numerous swing dancers of all skill levels, young and old, you might imagine Zaagman to be a seasoned social dancer with years of experience, having labored through exacting study in technique with hours upon hours of rehearsal. You may picture him perfecting every nuance involved in the art of dancing “East Coast Swing” or the “Lindy Hop’s” various patterns and techniques. However, as many of the most legendary bands, and most important movements often begin, Zaagman’s launching of G.R.O.S.S came from the most humble and unlikely of places.
The story of G.R.O.S.S’ beginnings is also a familiar one: Zaagman was trying to win the attention of a girl. When the lady who caught his eye asked Zaagman, “hey, could you come teach this dance with me?”. . . The flicker of a dancing flame that was to ignite Grand Rapids, was born.
Like any twitterpated young man, Zaagman knew better than to miss out on an opportunity to get know a girl he was sweet on, and so jumped (and jived) at the chance. They did the best lesson they could manage at Reform Bible College, back in the early 2000s. Fortunately for the GR’s Swing dancing scene, Zaagman “ended up liking the dancing more than the girl” and people kept coming and coming.
“The dance group grew so much that we ended up being all outsiders, and no college students. So, we had to find a different location and it ended up growing bigger and bigger, until it became this community thing. It was never intended to be a “hey, let’s create a ‘dance scene,” it just sort of happened. And then I discovered I really enjoyed doing it.
In the early days, it was just me paying out of pocket for a space to dance and then eventually, when we got Rosa Parks circle, we just drove a car into the park and blared music from a car’s sound system, until one day the city said, ‘hey, you should probably reserve this space,’ and when we did that, the city let us use their sound system too!”
The city never kicked Zaagman and his plucky group of dancers out of the park, so don’t worry, there was no ‘Footloose’ moment, where dancing was banned in the city, and thankfully, the dancers of Grand Rapids were not forced underground to dance in secret…although, that would have been kind of cool.
Admittedly, and as many great things in our culture tend to emerge, Zaagman had “no business teaching, no formal training, except a dance class at Calvin. G.R.O.S.S. was formed before YouTube was popular, so we just watched movies that had swing dance in them. Movies like “Swing Kids” or “League of Their Own” where Madonna dances swing, and we learned all those moves, and I thought, ‘oh yeah, sure, I can teach this,” reflected Zaagman, “and the thing is, it was great! And, I thought I knew what I was doing, until I met real swing dancers and realized, ‘wait a minute, I DON’T know what I’m doing. . . but it was too late, I was already a teacher!”
It was, however, “quite a journey to go from 5 people in a cafeteria to securing a place in history by winning an entry in the Guiness Book of World Records for the largest number of people swing dancing at the same time,” said Zaagman.
On that night, in 2016, right here in Grand Rapids, more than 1,275 people were rock-stepping and cutting a rug in Rosa Parks Circle. Far more than enough to surpass Laramie, Wyoming, claiming the Guiness ‘World Swing Dance Record’ and a place in history.
When Zaagman isn’t MC’ing Tuesday nights at Rosa Parks, he works as a Communication Advisor at Emergent Holdings, and is a devoted father to his 3-year-old daughter, who loves coming to swing dance every Tuesday with her Dad.
Having run Tuesday night swing for 20 years, Zaagman finds different ways to keep it interesting. For instance, when inspired by his daughter, he had the thought that, ‘we need to learn to dance with the carefree spirit of a child.’ And so sometimes he puts his daughter (or other children her age) in the middle of the dance floor and instructs all dancers to do exactly what she does.
“It’s fun to see grownups dance like a child again. It’s really helpful to get people over the whole ‘I don’t know what I’m doing’ thing, because you can just be goofy. My daughter has a lot of fun coming to dance on Tuesdays,” said Zaagman.
G.R.O.S.S. has even become a venue for dance instructors to donate their time teaching all who want to learn in different areas where the dance is held. While others watch or dance to the music being played you might find a smaller group learning how to waltz or learn West Coast Swing, Irish dance, or Salsa, and every so often, Zaagman will hold “themed events.”
“We just did a ‘Bridgerton Ball’ where Byron Doss, who teaches ballroom dance at The Social Dance Studio of Grand Rapids, performed a Waltz demonstration, and then taught everyone steps and a pattern in the Waltz.”
At this point, dear reader, you might be thinking, “that all sounds great and everything, but I’m single, and kind of shy, plus, I have no idea how to dance.”
I get it, but please know the record as of now is 16 people who have met and gotten engaged on the dance floor at G.R.O.S.S!
“People have literally come up to me and said, ‘I met my partner here, and I want to ask her to marry me here.’ One of the most fun and romantic stories was when a guy approached me and said, ‘hey, sorry to bother, but I’m supposed to meet my date here,’ related Zaagman.
The man was getting a little frantic, not wanting his date to think he stood her up on their first date. And it was simply impossible to find her with 800 people on the dance floor. She just couldn’t be found.
So, Zaagman, always a sucker for romance, stopped the song, abruptly, which tends to upset people who are in mid step, and said, “sorry to interrupt the song guys, but this is more important, we have a gentleman here looking for love. Is there an Emily in the crowd, looking for a Kevin? Emily raised her hand, the crowd parted like the Red Sea for Moses, and the young couple met for the first time in the middle of the dance floor. It was a beautiful moment,” said Zaagman.
Years later, the couple long forgotten, Zaagman felt a tap on his shoulder and turns to see Emily, the same young woman, holding out an engagement ring. She wanted to say ‘thank you’ for being the reason why we met.
So, Tuesday night swing is sometimes more than just a fun night of dancing, you might just witness a beautiful moment, or maybe even be lucky enough to have a beautiful moment of your own.
As we talked, Zaagman described other heart touching moments. One summer night in the park, a father brought his young daughter to Tuesday night swing. The man’s daughter was clinically shy, and the young girl’s therapist directed her father to do something together with her, to help “break her out of her shell.”
“After six months, the father came up to me and said, ‘Steve, I don’t think you understand, my daughter is a different person now. There’s no doubt it was because of coming out to dance that she has had such a positive and amazing transformation,” said an emotional Steve Zaagman, as he held back a tear.
“I wasn’t expecting to see people get over their social anxiety, or watch people lose weight and build confidence. Dancing hits so many categories whether spiritual, physical health, or mental wellbeing,” said Zaagman.
“Another interesting thing is that no one is on their phones, which in today’s world, isn’t something you ever see. And, for me, 21 years doing this dance, every Tuesday, as a hobby, I must come up with ways to keep it fresh for myself. So, sometimes we’ll bring in a drummer who brings in 100 drums, and we have a drum circle while people dance. We also started a guided networking meetup called the ‘Ice Breaker Social Club,” where people come just to make friends and form a community through interactive games,” related Zaagman. “It’s kind of like speed dating for friends where couples and singles, really anyone who wants to form connections can join in, and it is really taking off.”
So, after 21 years, why does Steve Zaagman keep heading out every Tuesday, 52 weeks a year, to create an environment where people of all ages, from all places, and all backgrounds come together and dance?
In his words, “as in parenting, or in life in general, when you see someone experience the joy of doing something new and wonderful for the first time, it makes me feel like I’m doing it for the first time, and there’s nothing like it.”
So, if you’re still on the fence about coming to Tuesday night Swing Dancing at Rosa Park’s circle this summer, you should know that, whether you have a dance partner or you don’t, whether you are experienced or have never danced, Tuesday nights dancing with The Grand Rapids Original Swing Society is an opportunity to not only learn to dance in an environment where there is no judgement, but a chance to do something where the focus is fun, and where you can find someone at your skill level to dance with, without pressure, or possibly even find someone with a little more experience that is happy to help show you a few new dance moves.
As far as expense, dancing with G.R.O.S.S is a low cost, donation only, outdoor opportunity for fun this summer, and you might even catch a live band playing on the first Tuesday of each month! Random activities, with line dances peppered throughout the evening, form an environment where anyone, from expert to novice can join in, or just sit back and take it all in, and enjoy. Just showing up makes you a partner and participant in creating a more vibrant, unique, and joyful Grand Rapids.
If learning ballroom dance is something you’re interested in learning more about, feel free to call or text 616.734.2003 and also check out dance opportunities happening all around the Grand Rapids area, nearly every night of the week here: Where To Get Your Groove On This Week.
Facebook Comments